cook out

Tony was planning to cook a lot of pork and invited Leina over on Sunday. Charles was also invited, but at first Leina didn't want to bring him because she said that he didn't like pork. Tony found that hard to believe, because everyone likes pork, even people who say they don't. Perhaps some don't like overcooked pork, or undercooked pork, or burnt pork, and some may not like the calories and fat that pork has, but properly done pork is a food that everyone likes--they just might not admit it to themselves.

It was unclear which of the above reasons made Charles a swinophobe, but Leina brought him along anyways. When they arrived, the pork was already slow cooking on the grill, and Tony, having been debriefed on Charles' tendency not to prefer pork, attempted to casually offer a hamburger to Charles. He had already ground some beef for spaghetti and meatballs the next day. He also offered bratwurst to Charles, which are 100% pork, but in sausage form. Tony did not know that Leina had already told Charles that she had told Tony that he didn't like pork, and Charles got upset and decided that he was going to eat whatever was offered no matter what because he wanted to be a good guest. So of course, when Tony tried to be polite and offer beef, Charles tried to be polite and accept it, and therefore a hamburger and bratwurst that neither party thought was necessary were made.

Leina felt really bad that she didn't help with the meal aside from bringing green beans, which is all that was requested of her. She did, however, bring yaki soba, a stir fry noodle, an onion, a carrot, and a 1/4 head of cabbage (Leina has a rule--don't pay more than 50 cents a pound for vegetables). She brought this in case Charles wasn't going to eat any of the meat, which, of course, he did. And Tony and Erica did not let her make the yaki soba--but she was able to leave it behind. They had it for dinner.